Slow Burn Book Club: Rites of the Starling

Welcome to the Slow Burn Book Club!

If you love spice, suspense, and irresistible storytelling, this book club is for you! Together we’ll explore today’s most talked-about titles featuring popular tropes—from enemies-to-lovers and forbidden romance to unreliable narrators and shocking secrets. Expect engaging conversations that dig into every twist, turn, and tantalizing theme.

We invite all members aged 18 and over to join us on the last Thursday of every month from 6:00–7:30 PM at the Carnegie Library Center.

Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry

Calandra’s five kingdoms are on the verge of destruction. The crux migration is coming. And in the wake of a devastating attack, I’ve been separated from the man who owns my heart.

I’m lost. Terrified. Homesick. Hunted by monsters, driven to exhaustion, and kidnapped by a powerful priest, the only thing keeping me going is the little girl counting on me to keep her safe. It’s my turn to become the Guardian.

Our lives change one fateful night. A night of death. A night of monsters. A night of truths. That night, I learn the real meaning of fear—and the depth of my own strength.

Everyone wants me to be something I’m not—a queen, a spy, a sacrifice. But what if I embrace my crown? What if the secrets I uncover save our realm?

What if my sacrifice means salvation for the man I love?

For too long, I’ve feared the monsters we make.

It’s time to discover the monster within.